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about WAMC |
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The West Australian Marathon Club is the largest running Club in Western Australia. It has around 1,000 members. Very few of these members actually run Marathons, although many of them have at one time or other. The members of the Club vary in age from under 10 to over 70 and and most live in the Perth Metropolitan area but membership is spread throughout the State, the Country and even the World! The Club is run by a Committee of 10 members who meet monthly. However the strength of the Club lies in its membership, it is a long standing condition of membership that everyone helps out in at least two events each year. The Race Directors are also Club members and no-one is paid for their efforts except the Admin Officer, Nancy Reed. We also receive considerable help from our sponsors for which we are very grateful. The West Australian Marathon Club is something of a misnomer. The Club conducts running events at all distances from 3 right up to 100 kilometres. In fact many people in Western Australia do not realise that the Club conducts events over such a variety of distances. Having been born during the Marathon boom of the early 70's the Club has survived because it has adapted to meet the desire of its membership. The Club holds races on the track, the road and cross country. Although the Club programme may look very similar each year, it has evolved over time. There are now many more shorter events (sometimes 'supporting' a main race), there are relays and there are twilight runs. Many of these races have been member's initiatives. Some work, some don't, but the Club is always willing to adapt and adopt to survive. Whilst the Club is basically a sporting body it does also raise funds at several charity runs during the year. There is also a 'social' aspect to the Club too. Training Groups meet up for other social activities, some sporting and some less so! There are also social runs on the Club programme too, the Matilda Bay Breakfast Run, the Pancake Run and the New Years Eve Run all spring readily to mind. During the last few years we have seen the demise of other Marathon Clubs within Australia. So why is there a Marathon Club in WA? A State with a small population and very concentrated on Perth? To understand this you will need to know that the Club's origins were from a group of disaffected runners, who were, to say the least, disappointed with the official bodies who organised running in the State. This group of 13 set out with the aim to "Foster long distance running and assist in furtherance of amateur sport" There can be little doubt, all these years later, they have achieved exactly what they set out to do. That is not to say that the club has not had times of trials and tribulations, but it has survived and is a very strong sporting body. West Australians are very active sporting people and that, to some degree, explains why this club has survived. Of course, the weather here in WA is very conducive to running, except for some of those very hot summer days! Almost without fail there is a discussion at the AGM as to whether the Club should change name. In some respects it seems inevitable that the change will come but, then again, it may never happen. Most events on the WAMC calendar are scheduled for early on Sunday morning. There are some races held at other times but they are few and far between. Club members seem to prefer to get their running over early in the day and then they can concentrate on family or other sporting events during the rest of the day. Of course during our summer it is essential that events are held early in the morning and events such as Marathons are generally scheduled for the cooler months. Racing is only part of what the Club does! There are also Training Groups. These usually meet on mid-week evenings, after work. However the Northern Suburbs Training Group has a strong tradition of meeting at 7 a.m. on Saturday. True to its roots the WAMC is fiercely independent. It was formed by runners to conduct events which are well organised but with the minimum of fuss. This still holds true today. WAMC events are always very well organised. That's not to say that things don't go wrong, but they don't usually go wrong two years in a row! The Race Directors are all Club members and are volunteers (some more willing than others). This means that they all know what pleases and displeases their fellow runners. Club members turning up for a race wear a Club issued number, pay their race entry fee and ensure that their number is recorded as an entrant. It's as simple as that. For a Non-Member they merely have to fill out a form and collect a number. Non members pay a little bit extra. The cost of becoming a member can be saved in nine races! All the Marshals and race Officials are Club Members so the events are conducted at low cost and with the maximum of good cheer! As finishers cross the line their time and place is recorded on a Chronomix and their number recorded and position noted. Once the Chronomix printed tape has been pinned up on the mobile notice board, finishers can check out their times. Medals, generally to the first three male and female runners, are awarded on the day. The results are usually entered in the Club computer by the end of the following day and are published quarterly in the Club Newsletter and here online in the results section. |
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